Tuesday, July 29, 2008

NAIA 3 Ready to Open for International Flights


For the first time after more than 6 years beyond its controversy laden completion, the Ninoy Aquino International Aiport (NAIA) terminal 3 would be rightly called as an international gateway when Cebu Pacific will start its international operations there on the 1st of August according to the airline's website.


NAIA terminal 3 exceeds the amenities provided by the old Domestic Terminal such as: A spacious check-in area, with 28 state-of-the-art counters allocated to Cebu Pacific as compared to 22 counters at the cramped check-in section of the Domestic Terminal and 9 boarding gates, as compared from 4 at the old Domestic.


Lance Gokongwei, the airline's President and CEO, said, "Now that we will be flying both domestic and international services under one roof, we will be able to see some operational efficiencies and offer our passengers an even better product.”

Practically the new airport is 6 years old so don't expect 2008 technology within the four corners of the terminal. On the bright side it is such a relief for the traveling public that they can experience an airport with world-class facilities unlike the old terminal which already gave up on properly servicing passengers without inconveniences because of its almost "jurassic" facilities.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Filipino Food... Globally Palatable?

I love to travel and I love to eat. Those were already given as I own a travel blog and you can see the evidence in my pictures here that eating is my pastime. Whenever I travel somewhere here in the Philippines or abroad I always want to try the local delicacies from local fastfoods or restaurants.

I have only one observation in my travels abroad. Why is that Filipino restaurants are not that popular against at least with other Southeast Asian food fares like Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Singaporean and Malaysian? Here in Manila one can find in every mall Thai and Vietnamese restaurants. But in my travels around the region I haven't yet seen a Filipino restaurant eventhough I know that they exist somewhere. My point is Filipino restaurants exist in Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur etc. but they are not that popular among non-Filipinos as most of them are targeting the expat Filipino community.

Even celebrity chefs from the U.S., Britain and Australia features Thai, Vietnamese, Singaporean and Malaysian recipes in their TV shows. I'm pretty sure Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, Anthony Bourdain and Bobby Chin all featured at least one dish from our neighbors in Southeast Asia in their own cable TV shows.

I have my hunch why Filipino foods are not that popular among non-Filipinos but I want your theory first before I give mine... Feel free to leave a comment here.

Saturday, July 19, 2008

I'm Off to Malaysia & Singapore... I'll be Back in a Jiffy!!!

Petronas Twin Towers (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)


Siloso Beach (Sentosa Island, Singapore)



Whenever I mention to my close friends that I will be going to Singapore or Kuala Lumpur they all have 1 common question... Singapore? Again?

In my last trip to Singapore even the immigration officer at Ninoy Aquino International Airport even asked what I'm doing in Singapore that I will be going there for the 8th time. I don't want to lie so I said that I'm on vacation. It is my constitutional right to travel and my name is not on the immigration hold-departure list so I have no fear going to Singapore again.

Even if I already explored practically all the parts of Malaysia from the beach haven Langkawi and Bukit Changloon near the Thai border in the North; Johor and Melaka in the South; Sabah and Pulau Labuan in the East; and the beautiful island of Penang in the West... and of course the capital city of Kuala Lumpur (I don't know how to classify it whether central or north or west Malaysia, hehehe).

So why am I now on my way to those two countries if I have seen them for several times? I don't know either =)

I'll be back after 5 days...

Thursday, July 17, 2008

I Love Cheap Destinations!

10,000 Vietnam dong= U$.63 or 63 cents

I know for a fact that it is quite expensive for a middle class, peso-earning Filipino to leisurely travel abroad but it does not have to be if you carefully plan when and where to go. If you ignore the places where tourists come in herds you will save enough money to travel longer, more often or with a touch of class.

A hundred travel tips on how to save from discounts and finding a good deal would not be enough if in the FIRST place the destination is expensive. Even if the exchange rate is 1U$=Php30 or 1U$=Php44 one can travel well if you go to a country where your humble peso is worth a fortune.

As a rule of thumb, you should not worry about how much your taxi ride or your lunch when you are in a foreign place for you to enjoy the experience of being new to a country. Cheap and near countries like Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and to some extent Indonesia offer many of the world's most beautiful natural and man-made sights like Halong Bay, Luang Prabang, Angkor Wat and Borobudur which are all listed under the UNESCO World Heritage sites.

To compare the cost, a coupon taxi ride from Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Paranaque to our house in the neighboring Las Pinas City costs at least 450 pesos, 270 pesos if via a metered airport taxi. Well, you will also spend the same amount for your coupon taxi ride in Hanoi to your hotel in the city center but that would be a 40-kilometer ride as compared to less than 15 kilometers from NAIA to my house. And in fairness to the Vietnamese people, their taxis are newer and well maintained as compared to a number of Manila taxis.

I thought my 90-peso Camiguin t-shirt is a bargain but to my surprise I can buy 3 t-shirts in Vietnam for just $5, while your $10 in Laos will get you 12 good quality baseball caps (until now I still haven't yet disposed about 3 baseball caps). In Indonesia, I got a very beautiful high quality F1-themed jacket for only about the equivalent of 400 pesos which even some of my former officemates are willing to buy it for 2,000. I thought my $2 Vietnam t-shirt two years ago is cheap, well after practicing my bargaining skills my $5 produced 3 t-shirts this time :) hahaha! It is just like "reverse inflation or deflation" just in time when all the price of commodities in the world are skyrocketing... $2 in 2006 becomes $1.67 in 2008.

Typically, Filipinos consider Bangkok and Hong Kong as the travel destinations when you are in a budget and just would like to go out the country to go on a shopping spree. All I can say is that "yes they are cheap, but it's cheaper somewhere else."

Friday, July 11, 2008

Philippine Rankings


A colleague of mine told me about Rankopedia, as the name implies one can literally list and rank anything which of course will be voted by members. I searched some travel related categories and anything which lists Philippines in its ranking. Here are just some of the rankings:

Most Hospitable/Courteous Citizens of the World


1. Canada
2. Switzerland
3. Netherlands
4. United States
5. Ireland
6. Australia
7. Philippines
8. Japan
9. Italy
10. Germany


Asian Country With the Most Beautiful Women


1. Philippines
2. Japan
3. India
4. South Korea
5. Israel
6. Lebanon
7. Vietnam
8. Hong Kong
9. China
10. Taiwan

Countries With the Best Beaches


1. Brazil
2. United States
3. Australia
4. Fiji
5. Spain
6. Philippines
7. France
8. South Africa
9. New Zealand
10. Canada


Best City in Asia


1. Hong Kong, China
2. Tokyo, Japan
3. Delhi, India
4. Manila, Philippines
5. Singapore City, Singapore
6. Karachi, Pakistan
7. Bangkok, Thailand
8. Cebu, Philippines
9. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
10. Shanghai, China


Thursday, July 10, 2008

Asian Spirit Sale


It's time that local carrier Asian Spirit join the seat sale bandwagon for the lean season. Lately, all I am posting here in my blog is the promotions from Cebu Pacific Air, Philippine Airlines and Air Philippines. I commend the humble efforts of Asian Spirit for serving the secondary and even some tertiary air routes in our nation of 7,107 islands that big airlines try to stay away. And now, I am even happier that they announced a seat sale which also now includes all applicable taxes and surcharges. As usual, you still have to pay for the terminal fee in respective airports.

For as low as 989 pesos you will be on your way to for a holiday in Palawan or other destinations in Bicol and the Visayas region starting today up to October 15. The seat sale will be only available up to July 20.

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Philippines: A Haven of VERY Big Shopping Malls

SM Mall of Asia (4th biggest in the world)


SM City North EDSA (8th biggest in the world)


SM Megamall (9th biggest in the world)
(all pictures were taken from Wikipedia)


I just stumbled upon an article from United Arab Emirates-based The National magazine which says that the biggest mall in the universe which is located in Dongguan, China is also the world's largest flop as 99.2% of the available space for lease are still available... What a contrast here in the Philippines as I don't know yet of a Filipino who does not love to go to malls alone or with the whole family.

The good thing about it is that 3 out of the 10 biggest malls in the world which are all here in the capital of the Philippines are just all within several kilometers from each other and they are far from being empty unlike the world's biggest mall. The SM Mall of Asia, SM Megamall and The SM City North EDSA are all included in the Top 10 list of the world's biggest shopping malls. Then if that's the case I can call my country, particularly Metro Manila, as a "shopper's paradise." No other country has that many "biggest" malls in the list so far.

I know that there is a construction boom in many parts of the globe including China, India and the Middle East so I will cherish this feat of Philippine shopping malls as among the biggest in the face of the planet before many other newer malls will conquer the top position as the world's biggest.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

New Destinations from PAL Express


Philippine Airlines budget carrier PAL Express will open new routes from Manila starting on July 15. The residents and would be visitors to San Jose, Mindoro; Virac, Catandanues and Surigao City may benefit with the "Buy One, Take One" promo fare which was extended up to July 21.

Flights for Calbayog in Samar follows on July 17 and then flights for Catarman in Northern Samar on August 1. PAL express will operate the 76-seater Bombardier Q400 and the 50-seater Bombardier Q300 turbo-propeller aircraft for these routes.

All of the new destinations are eligible for the promo fare. The promo offers passengers a free one-way ticket for every one-way ticket bought, with all fees and surcharges waived for travel between July 15 and October 15. The complimentary ticket can be used for the return journey or for another one-way flight.

For more information, please call its 24-hour reservations hotline: (02) 855-8888 in Manila

Monday, June 30, 2008

I Conquered the RIDICULOUS Challenge!


There's a new burger resto aptly called Burger Avenue at the Antel Life Style City along Makati Avenue. For those who are burger fanatic or just love to eat, you will be so happy they have an eating challenge called the Ridiculous Challenge. To make the long story short, I conquered the challenge with flying colors. My picture is now among the few displayed at their bulletin board who also conquered the challenge of eating the humongous burger in less than 5 minutes. Maybe I will not eat any beef products for a week as even more than 6 hours had past I can still taste the flavor of the beef. On the bright side, because of that challenge my lunch today was free, hehehe.

Here are the mechanics (taken from an article posted by Beatriz Acosta at www.clickthecity.com. You will find also the photographs I used here in that article):


" Make your way to the counter and order yourself a Ridiculous Burger (P200+) - three big, thick, juicy patties in one burger. This burger is actually a steal at 200 pesos - most burger joints offer the same price just for one patty with a sauce of your choice. Now, back to the burger. It is ridiculous and action-packed with its three all-beef patties, a hefty stuffing of lettuce and tomatoes. And to top it all off, three slices of cheese."

"Just inform the people at the counter that you are taking on the Ridiculous Challenge, and they will whip up their timer. Finish the burger within five minutes, ring the bell, and you get a full refund! Yep, a free burger if you can chomp on it before the time is up. And before you go on exclaiming, "That's ridiculous!", it sort of is not, as a good and growing number of people have triumphed over the huge burgers. Burger Avenue has a 'Hall of Fame' of sorts on their wall. They've got photos of the people who gobbled up the burgers in record time, proving that indeed, you can do it!"

My winning pictures
...with 38 seconds more to spare

So what are you waiting for? Go there and beat my record, I'm sure it is not the best time so it is really viable specially for buffet fanatics. Believe me, after eating that burger there's still room left for dessert :-)

My Wordless Monday Picture Blog (Week 43)


Friday, June 27, 2008

Philippine Airlines vs. Cebu Pacific vs. Air Philippines




The beauty of competition is that the consumers have a choice and normally prices will go down due to the concept of demand & supply. The three leading local airlines Cebu Pacific, Air Philippines and Philippine Airlines are now head-to-head to capture filler seats for the lean season from July up to mid-October as they currently have a seat sale for their domestic destinations.

Cebu Pacific
- as low as Php699 one-way for its Luzon destinations. Available for online purchase.

Air Philippines
- Same banana but they are more "wise" as you will buy a ticket as low as Php1,398 one-way but your return trip is as they say it "Free." Not available for online purchase.

Philippine Airlines
- Same concept as with Air Philippines, just add a few hundreds of pesos. Not available for online purchase.

All the 3 airlines now include all the surcharges and taxes in their advertised promo fare. So now the choice is yours. It will now come to which airline you prefer if you have a brand loyalty to any of them. If you ask me, I will only choose either Cebu Pacific or Philippine Airlines depending on the schedule of their flights to my chosen destination. An advantage of choosing Cebu Pacific is that it lets you to book its promo fare online unlike the other two airlines.

For reservations and if you have questions please call:
Cebu Pacific Air - (02) 702-0888
Air Philippines - (02) 855-9000
Philippine Airlines - (02) 855-8888

Western Visayas Needs Your Help

TASK FORCE NOAH
for the victims of Typhoon Frank

Typhoon FRANK (International Codename: Fengsen) caused vast damages to lives, properties and livelihood of our follow countrymen over the weekend. As of the latest report, the number of casualties has been increasing. Damages were greatly felt in some regions where the actual path of the typhoon crossed. Almost all of the province of Iloilo is submerged in water. People are still stranded on top of the roofs of their houses for two days now in some towns of Iloilo. Other areas of the Visayas are also calling for aid.

General Information:

As of 23 June 2008:

10,000 families (40,000 individuals) affected of 20 provinces, 10,000 families are in 275 evacuation centers and increasing.

Under State of Calamity: Provinces of Iloilo, Capiz, Masbate. Cities of Iloilo, Roxas, Zamboanga (selected areas). Municipalities in Bulacan-Paombong and Marilao

NDCC: Floods, storm surge and landslides mostly in the Visayas and Southern Tagalog have affected 366,444 people. Of the total number of affected people, 182,686 were in the Western Visayas, including 155,005 in Antique province alone.

Stranded 5,095 passengers, 288 rolling cargo, 90 trucks, 59 passenger buses, 48 small vehicles, and eight sea vessels.

ILOILO Facts
“BULIG ILOILO”

Philippine National Red Cross; based on field reports from PNRC staff, the death toll had reached 229, with 101 reported in Iloilo alone.

Iloilo Gov. Neil Tupas earlier said 59 people drowned in the province while another 40 were missing. “Almost all the towns are covered by water. It’s like an ocean,” Tupas said, adding thousands have been displaced in the province that is home to 1.7 million people.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque also said he received reports that the Aniway District Hospital in Iloilo, was submerged in floodwaters as deep as six feet.

Almost all of Iloilo’s 42 towns and this city, including those that had not previously experienced flooding, were under water according to Jerry Bionat, Executive officer of the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council (PDCC).

Power outrage reported in Iloilo City; including Odiongan town, Romblon and Antique Province

Our contacts in the Philippine Air Force are willing to fly even round-the-clock relief operations for Typhoon Frank’s victims but unfortunately they tell us there are no relief goods to airlift. We are appealing for donations like ready-to-eat goods, water, clothing and/or cash/check for the victims of Typhoon Frank. Primary target of this initiatives are the heavily affected communities and areas not normally reached by relief operations. We intend to send the relief donations immediately for the urgent need of the victims.

===========================

*DONATION MECHANISM*

===========================

GOODS
You may directly donate your goods: ready-to-eat goods, clothing, water at Room 102 Cervini Residence Hall, Ateneo de Manila University, Loyola Heights, Quezon City.

Contact Person : Mr. Tim Gabuna
Trunkline : 426-6001 local 5932
Direct line : 426-6119
Mobile number : 0920-9609802

CASH/CHECK
Direct deposits may be made to:
SIMBAHANG LINGKOD NG BAYAN (Account Name/Payee)
Bank of the Philippine Islands (Loyola-Katipunan Branch)
Peso Checking Account Number: 3081-1111-61
Dollar Savings Account Number: 3084-0420-12

Or channel to:

Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan
Loyola House of Studies
Ateneo de Manila University
Loyola Heights 1108, Quezon City

Contact Information:
Landline : 426-6101 loc. 3440/3441
Telefax : 426-5968
Mobile : 0922-8600-752 (SUN-8600-SLB)
Web : www.slb.ph

Look for : Ms. Marj Tejada

For proper acknowledgement:

Please fax a copy of the validated deposit slip to SLB through telefax 426-5986

Kindly indicate contact information: Name, address, email, landline/mobile

Those who wish to be anonymous may skip this procedure

FOR GCASH TRANSACTION:
1. Any Globe or TM subscribers should be registered first in Gcash before doing any Gcash transaction.

2. To register, just text the syntax
REG_4 digit M-PIN/mother's maiden name/first name/last name/address and send to 2882
Ex: REG 1234/Getino/Liwanag/Ferdinand/766 Metrica St. Sampaloc Manila and send to 2882

3. When the subs already done with cash in, he may now able to do donate or any Gcash transaction he wanted

To Donate: Just text the syntax
DONATE_AMOUNT_4 digit M-PIN_INSTITUTION CODE and send to 2882
Ex. DONATE 100 1234 SLB and send to 2882

BRO. ISMAEL JOSE CHAN-GONZAGA, S.J.
Executive Director
Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan

MR. ADEL BRIONES
Associate Director, CCS
Ateneo School of Government
Convenor, ADMU DREAM TEAM

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Privatize Banaue Rice Terraces?

picture taken from www.wowphilippines.com.ph

I can't believe what I read at GMANews.TV which reported that an influential business group wants the government to privatize a handful of the country's major tourist spots, a move that they said will ensure the preservation of the areas.

Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry president and appointed tourism private sector chief Samie Lim said the Philippine Tourism Authority should sell some of its major assets which have the potential to become even more attractive to both foreign and local visitors.

Among those spots that should be privatized are the Banaue Rice Terraces, Picnic Grove and Palace in the Sky in Tagaytay City and Burnham Park in Baguio City.

Banaue Rice Terraces to be privatized? Well, I don't have problems with the Picnic Grove and Burnham Park to be privatized... but an "ancient" natural wonder (well it's man made technically) to be privatized is kinda below the belt. I believe that the government should let the private sector manage parks and beach resorts in able for them to be more tourist friendly and accessible (I don't know why but I find government managed parks and resorts are not that tourist friendly). Just an analogy... Would China privatize the Great Wall?

Lim said that by having private groups to manage the destinations, the country could have a better chance of attaining its goal of hitting some 10 million tourists arrivals by 2010. Department of Tourism (DOT) data showed the country accommodates an average of 3 million tourists annually.


Apart from this proposal, Lim is also raising the possibility of privatizing all the government-controlled duty-free shops. I don't have a problem with that,

You can privatized all you want but leave Banaue and other natural wonders alone.

Source: http://beta.ph.news.yahoo.com/gma/20080603/tbs-businessmen-want-rice-terraces-other-1da90e5.html

Friday, June 20, 2008

I'm Off to Boracay... I'll be Back in a Jiffy!!!



This week is a very busy week here at the office so I'm looking forward for the weekend because I'll be in the most famous beach here in the Philippines... Boracay. I have been to this island for about 7x already but I still don't get tired observing the countless developments this little island endure for the past few decades. Even if there are issues whether the small island can sustain the various activities brought about by the boom in the tourism industry in the area no one can really stop the transformation of Boracay into a capitalist haven.

I love Boracay the most when I first saw its somewhat virgin beauty in the summer of 1996 when there is hardly a crowd even during the Holy Week holidays. Too bad I can't post pictures here of my Boracay sojourn in 1996 as the digital camera then is never heard of yet. I hope I can transfer some of my travel pictures taken using a film camera into a digital format so I can post them here in my blog.

So much for being sentimental about the "old" Boracay which I love more than the Boracay of today... I have to live with what that paradise island can still offer and I'm pretty sure that I will still enjoy my experience.

P.S.: I just hope that the f#ck%ng typhoon named Frank don't spoil our vacation. I pray that the prediction of PAGASA will be highly accurate and expect the typhoon to be not in direct threat to the Visayas region.


Thursday, June 12, 2008

Happy Birthday Pilipinas!!!

MABUHAY! Happy 110th Independence Day to the country which I love the most!

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

This is the First Time! All-In Ticket Price!


I think this is the first time I heard of an airline sale at least here in the Philippines with airfares which include fuel surcharge, insurance, other government fees and the mandatory 12% VAT in its advertised price. I'm glad that this will be a permanent feature of budget carrier Cebu Pacific (CEB) as it shifts to an "all-in" pricing format so passengers will immediately know the total amount they need to pay.

The 'all-in' pricing format is introduced with a seat sale across CEB’s domestic network. The promotional offer will run from June 12 to 22, 2008 and is valid for travel on July 1 to October 15, 2008. There are more than half a million seats allocated for this promotion.

'All-in' fares for short sectors such as Manila-Legaspi are at Php699 one-way while a one-way Manila-Cebu flight would cost Php999 and a Manila-Davao sector would cost only Php1,499 during the seat sale. At seat sale levels, these reduction represent savings of up to 56% over today’s rate.

As we all know that the price of petroleum products which includes jet fuel is in its all-time high so these ticket prices are almost a steal! This is the cheapest I think you can get a ticket comparable with the prices in the late 1990's. Based from my experience and if my memory serves me right, the last time a ticket to the Visayas region cost less than 1,000 bucks is way back 20 years ago.